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Runway issues have left one of Britain's busiest airports with severe delays. Flights were forced to be grounded overnight, with thousands of passengers set to be impacted. Several flights were forced to be cancelled as planes were told they could not take off from Leeds Bradford Airport on Friday (October 24). Air traffic control did not give the go-ahead for flights to resume until 5am on Saturday morning (October 25). As a result, airlines such as Jet2 and Ryanair that serve the airport were told to prepare for delays due to the incident. The first flight out of the airport on Saturday morning was a Jet2 service bound for Heraklion on the Greek island of Crete. According to the Sun , flights that had been due to land at Leeds Bradford Airport had to be diverted to other UK airports due to issues with the runway. However, while passengers were able to get going once again, the airport did warn those jetting off to check with their airlines for any further delays. Typically, Leeds Bradford Airport is open for 24 hours and serves a variety of European holiday destinations. However, after problems were seen on the airport's runway, precautions were put in place and the terminal was shut down for the night. Staff at the airport are continuing to ensure that the runway issue is fixed as soon as possible. In a statement, bosses at the airport said that the safety of voyagers passing through the airstrip is its number one priority. The full statement read: "Due to an unforeseen issue with the runway, we have had to take the decision to close the airport until the morning. Customers are advised to check with their airline for the most up-to-date information regarding their flight. "We are working to resolve the disruption as soon as possible, the safety and comfort of the passengers travelling through our terminal is our number one priority," the statement added. "Our team is on the ground in the terminal to answer any customer queries regarding departures." Leeds Bradford Airport is one of a handful of airports across the UK that allow 24 hour operations, having first been given the ability to do so back in 1994. The airport sees several planes take off and land every day, with the main routes going to Alicante, Dublin and Palma de Mallorca. According to its website, nighttime flights are also allowed at the airport, with only the least disruptive flights being allowed to land at the airport between 11pm and 7am. This separates the airport from the likes of nearby Manchester and Liverpool airports, as they are required to halt large commercial planes from landing so as not to disturb people living nearby to the airport. However, despite the possibility for 24-hour flights, which helps to massively boost the local economy, Leeds Bradford Airport is not the easiest airport to travel through. According to survey results carried out by Which?, Leeds Bradford served as the 15th best terminal in the country, losing out to the likes of Exeter and Liverpool, who topped the table. For the latest breaking news and stories from across the globe from the Daily Star, sign up for our newsletters .
